Chickpea and pea tempeh shows promise as novel plant protein source
University of Massachusetts Amherst researchers have secured USDA funding to develop and evaluate tempeh products from chickpeas and dry peas. The research aims to create nutritious, palatable meat alternatives that could help counteract negative health impacts associated with Western dietary patterns.
Development phase to explore fermentation dynamics
UMass Amherst research team, led by food scientist Hang Xiao, has received a £387,000 grant from the USDA’s Pulse Crop Health Initiative to investigate the transformation of chickpeas and dry peas into tempeh-based protein products. The four-year project will examine how fungal fermentation affects the nutritional and sensory properties of these novel tempeh formulations.
Molecular mechanisms under investigation
The research addresses a critical knowledge gap in tempeh production science. While traditional tempeh fermentation has been practiced for centuries, the molecular basis of how fungal fermentation impacts product functionality remains poorly understood. The team will analyse dynamic changes occurring during fermentation, tracking how fungi utilise and transform pulse nutrients into different compounds.
“Tempeh fermentation is mainly done empirically without a scientific understanding of the molecular basis by which fungal fermentation impacts product functionality, such as nutritional and sensory properties and health impact,” explains Xiao, who is consistently ranked among the world’s most highly cited researchers.
Consumer acceptance criteria
Sensory evaluation forms a crucial component of the research programme. The team, including sensory scientist Alissa Nolden, will conduct detailed consumer panel assess-ments examining taste, aroma, and textural attributes of the novel tempeh products.
“If it’s not tasteful, people won’t like it, and they won’t consume it frequently enough to offer health benefits,” notes Xiao, highlighting the importance of palatability in functional food development.
Health impact assessment
Preliminary studies using an obese rodent model have yielded promising results. Data indicate that chickpea tempeh consumption inhibited several negative health markers associated with high-fat, high-sugar diets, including:
• Body weight gain
• Fatty liver formation
• Adverse gut microbiome changes
The research team will conduct further investigations to evaluate how these novel tempeh products might counteract the metabolic effects of Western dietary patterns.
Technical expertise
The project brings together complementary scientific capabilities, including genomic approaches to fungal fermentation led by Associate Professor John Gibbons. This multidisciplinary collaboration aims to develop optimised processing parameters for consistent product quality. Chemical analysis will focus on identifying compounds produced during fermentation, including amino acids and flavonoids. Initial data suggest the process yields a high-fibre, low-fat product with enhanced nutritional properties compared to unfermented pulses.
This research builds on Xiao’s ongoing work in plant protein development, which includes a parallel project using smart fermentation to create protein products from soybean meal, a byproduct of oil extraction.
